


Deep Down

by Chocolatepot



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Black Family (Harry Potter) - Freeform, Family Feels, Ficlet, Gen, Sirius Black Lives
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 03:11:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17675333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chocolatepot/pseuds/Chocolatepot
Summary: Sirius finally gets to learn about Regulus turning on Voldemort.





	Deep Down

**Author's Note:**

  * For [octopus_fool](https://archiveofourown.org/users/octopus_fool/gifts).



The last days of the war seemed to be extremely short, but filled with so much activity that when Sirius went to sleep and tried to go over the events, they actually seemed to have been very long. Several of these went by before he had the chance to actually sit down with Harry and try to fix on the important topics of How He Was Doing and Really, How He Was Doing After Everything.

“I’m … fine,” Harry said, not exactly meeting Sirius’s eyes and looking more like a child than he had in a while. “I mean, not really, but I will be.”

“Right.” He let a moment go by. “Is there something you want to talk to me about?” Sirius wasn’t sure if he’d ever be what you might call paternal, but he could usually manage to fall back into being a reliable older brother, even if it had been a long time since he’d properly filled that role. “Maybe about … Ginny?”

“What? No, we’re fine. It’s – ” Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair, looking very much like James when he was exasperated. “Look, I have to tell you something about your brother, but I don’t know how to start. Regulus wasn’t what you think.” The whole story came tumbling out, and Sirius absorbed it all in uncharacteristic silence.

For years, whenever he’d thought of his brother, his mind had gone back to the last time they spoke – helped along by the Dementors, no doubt, who brought back the worst memories first. Shouting, accusations of betrayal. Had Reg told him they weren’t brothers anymore first, or had he said that James was his brother before it? Reg’s face, so much like his own, contorted into a snarl, and no doubt he’d looked the same.

But now … it was like he was allowed to look at the earlier memories, finally. The times they ran into each other in Reg’s first year, when they could still talk to each other. Teaching him to fly on his first broom in the gardens of their aunt’s country estate. Little Reggie, practically still a baby, climbing into his bed after having a bad dream, because there was never a question of going to Mother or Father for comfort.

“So Reg came through in the end,” he said eventually, and took a sip of his firewhiskey. “I knew he did.” At Harry’s extremely doubtful look, he added, “Very deep down.”


End file.
